- published: 13 Oct 2011
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Haute-Saône (French pronunciation: [ot.soːn]; Arpitan: Hiôta-Sona) is a French department of the Franche-Comté (Franche-Comtât) région, named after the Saône River.
The department was created in the early years of the French Revolution through the application of a law dated 22 December 1789, from part of the former province of Franche-Comté. The frontiers of the new department corresponded approximately to those of the old Bailiwick of Amont.
Haute-Saône is part of the Franche-Comté region.
Neighbouring departments are Côte-d'Or to the west, Haute-Marne to the north-west, Vosges to the north, Territoire de Belfort to the east, Doubs to the south and east and Jura to south.
Haute-Saône is divided into 32 cantons
Te department can be presented as a transitional territory positioned between several of the more depressed departments of eastern France and the so called Blue Banana zone characterised, in recent decades by relatively powerful economic growth.
The department is overwhelmingly rural, despite the area having been at the forefront of industrialisation in the eighteenth century. The industrial tradition endures, but industrial businesses tend to be on a small scale. In 2006 employment by economic sector was reported as follows: